NYC looks toward congestion pricing

New York City is already an expensive place to drive – tolls are $6 and a parking garage for just an hour can run you $20. Now the mayor wants to make it so costly some people won’t even bother driving and will take mass transit instead.

Mayor Michael Bloomberg is proposing to reduce traffic and pollution by charging cars $8 and trucks $21 to enter the busiest parts of Manhattan.

New York would become the first U.S. city to adopt a “congestion pricing” plan of this magnitude. The proposal is similar to a system that London has used since 2003, and officials there say it has significantly reduced congestion.